Willie Tyler today

[woodward]

Does anyone ever hear any mention of Willie Tyler and Lester? At the Martha Reeves Walk of Fame celebration it was announced that Willie Tyler was in attendance but no mention was made of Lester.

Willie had an album released on Motown which I have a copy of.

I hope Lester is still with us.

Any comments?

[lakeside]

Willie Tyler and Lester | Facebook

[motony]

Lester has not aged a bit.

[mysterysinger]

I thought he'd changed his name to Theboyfromxtown

[woodward]

I highly doubt that Theboyfromxtown has aged a day. His memory is as good as it always was. He knows his stuff.

[ralpht]

When I was in The Sunliners we played a rather seedy Detroit club { the Webwood Inn }
that had additional entertainment on the weekend. Usually a stripper. Then one weekend this young Black Dude shows up with a dummy. The weekend act: Willy Tyler and Lester. Such a nice guy with a unique act...an African American dummy. Nothing like it at the time. I had no clue that real success would be knocking on the door for this talented dude. I was always happy for his success.

[woodward]

I found an interview from 2013 that Willie conducted. I learned something I was unaware of from this interview. Although Willie/Lester was famous for being part of the Motown Revues in the early days, I see where in April of 1969 an ad for the Copacabana showed the Temptations but it only had Willie's name on it. No mention of Lester, however, the poster stated that the reason Lesters name was left off was because there was no space for it. In another ad from May of 1970 they promoted the Four Tops at the Copacabana and the ad showed both names. I was unaware that they made appearances with individual performers only vs. an entire collection of performers.

My only wish in life is that Willie would donate Lester to be on display at the Motown Museum. That would be awesome. Fingers crossed.

[nabob]

I met Willie Tyler in 1979 on a flight from Los Angeles to Atlanta. He was very humble in pleasant conversation with no hint that his life had been touched by celebrity. He was almost embarrassed that I knew of his talent even though I had no connection to the entertainment industry.

[Spreadinglove21]

I wonder if Willie Tyler and Lester ever had a time when their relationship was as toxic and intense as in this episode of The Twilight Zone--The Dummy?

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0734636/?ref_=ttep_ep33

[TomBairdFan]

If ever there was an album crying out for a special edition! Although there are 41 tracks, Willie Tyler's album is quite short. There must be plenty of Lester ad-libs and unissued live material available. From the LP liner notes: ''Lester only has one name, he's made out of wood and has the stiffest left leg in captivity. But you would never know that the fellow is not human once Willie Tyler sets the flashy little man on his knee and commences an act that has been applauded all over the United States, Canada and Europe.''
As the most enduring of all the Motown artistes, Lester deserves the special treatment - and a good polish.

[nsoule]

Lester was with Willie Tyler at the Martha Reeves HWOF ceremony:

[144man]

There's a nice version of "Fever" on the Hello Dummy album.

After Willie Tyler and Lester split up, Willie Tyler was fine, but Lester's performances were rather wooden.